Norwegian Air International, a European low-cost carrier that recently won approval for flights to the U.S., has clearly struck a nerve.

On Thursday, hundreds of employees of U.S.-based airlines chanting “Deny NAI” held a protest in front of the White House. The pilots, flight attendants, and mechanics contend that the airline, a subsidiary of Norwegian Air Shuttle, based the company in Ireland to evade Norwegian labor laws.

“Southwest pilots are proud to stand with our peers and oppose this dangerous decision,” said Captain Jon Weaks, president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots’ Association.

The airline denies the charges and points out that it has hired over 400 U.S.-based crewmembers over the past two years. In the past, airline executives have said that its entry into more U.S. markets would increase competition over the Atlantic without sacrificing safety. Norwegian only operates new Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft on its long-haul flights.

Last month, a bipartisan group of congressmen introduced legislation to block the U.S. Department of Transportation’s approval of Norwegian Air’s expansion in the United States.

The agency gave the green light to plans for Norwegian Air International, the Irish-flag subsidiary of Norwegian Air Shuttle, to operate flights to the United States from Ireland and other parts of the European Union in mid April. After consulting with the Justice and State departments, transportation officials said they found no basis to reject Norwegian.

The coronavirus is now affecting 104 countries and territories across the globe and many travelers are postponing or cancelling their travel plans as a result.
In some cases, a traveler is holding off because travel to his destination is simply not possible due to quarantine and containment rules; in others, it’s simply a desire not to go somewhere where one might end up with the coronavirus or trapped in a quarantined …

In early May, Warren Buffett divested all of his investment firm’s holdings in the four major U.S. airlines, warning that the “world has changed” for the aviation industry due to the coronavirus crisis. In mid May, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun said he saw a bumpy road ahead for the airline industry and predicted that a major carrier would not survive 2020 as a result.
It appears Buffett and Calhoun were on …